I've always been more positive about the idea that more voices on the ground with expertise that has been undiscovered was a good thing. The audience knew things and this was a medium that allowed them in some way to have a bi-directional relationship with a news outlet. This is enormously valuable. So it's not a binary choice that leaves us with no nuance. Can we love citizens doing journalism if we want to use that word or just giving information? We'll also decrying those who seem to feed those with poor information diets, information that is caloric, toxic, and in a quantity that makes it impossible to stop gorging on.
Chris Licht faces an uphill battle at CNN. He got the CEO gig in the midst of a prickly merger between Warner Bros. and Discovery and right after the shocking exit of beloved long-time boss, Jeff Zucker. In his first six months, he’s shut down CNN+, ousted Brian Stelter, and shuffled anchors around, including Don Lemon and Jake Tapper. This week, the network chief held an internal town hall meeting where he faced a staff of thousands and discussed upcoming layoffs. Shortly afterwards, he sat down with Kara — who grilled him, of course.
She asks Licht whether he has any real actual power or if he’s simply executing orders from Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav — who is in search of cuts, as the company stares down the barrel at $50 billion in debt — and billionaire board member, John Malone, who has said he’d like to see more “centrist” programming from CNN. They discuss Licht’s vision for the newsroom, his plan to build trust with journalists who fear losing jobs, and how CNN will cover Donald Trump during the 2024 election.
Before the interview, Kara and Nayeema discuss the challenges facing journalism in an era of disinformation. Stay tuned for Kara’s closing rant on “citizen journalism” and Elon’s latest broadside against the press.
You can find Kara and Nayeema on Twitter @karaswisher and @nayeema.
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